Welcome to a mindful breathing meditation.
Please take a moment to get yourself settled in a bodily posture that you can be comfortable and awake and just begin to bring your awareness to the breath and being mindful of breathing in and breathing out.
Finding the place where you feel your own breath to be prominent and distinct.
It could be at the tip of the nose,
The inner nostrils,
The upper lip.
For others,
You may feel the breath more prominently in the chest or the belly or other places in the body.
Wherever you feel the breath to be most prominent and distinct,
Letting awareness rest at that place and just being mindful of breathing in and breathing out,
Breathing normally and breathing naturally,
Being present.
Now there's no other place to go and nothing else to do.
Just taking your life one breath at a time.
Breathing in with awareness and breathing out.
Breathing normally and breathing naturally.
And of course,
There's fluctuations from time to time.
Sometimes the breath is a little bit longer,
Sometimes a little bit shorter,
But without any manipulation.
Just breathing in your own natural way and experiencing it directly.
As you're breathing in,
You're aware that you're breathing in.
As you're breathing out,
Being aware that you're breathing out.
There's no need to visualize or to analyze,
But the direct experience of the breath as it comes in and goes out,
Being present.
And there will be times,
Of course,
That the mind will wander off,
Going off into the future,
Going off into the past.
This is normal.
Once you become aware that your mind has wandered,
Just acknowledging wherever it went and then returning back to the breath again.
Breathing in and breathing out.
Easy does it,
One breath at a time,
Being present.
Again,
If the mind wanders off,
It's very normal.
Once you become aware of it,
Acknowledge wherever you went and just coming back to the rhythms of your own breath,
The ebb and flow as it comes in and goes out,
Being present.
So with each breath,
There's a beginning,
A middle,
And an end to the inhalation,
And then it's transition into the exhalation,
This ever-changing nature of the breath as we breathe in and breathe out.
No other place to go,
Nothing else to do.
And for now,
Knowing that you have to be just being aware of the breath as it comes in and goes out,
Being present.
Again,
That reminder of breathing in,
Breathing out normally and naturally,
Just taking our lives one inhalation and one exhalation at a time.
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
Being present.
Just feeling a place in the body where you feel the breath to be most prominent.
Again,
For some,
It may be in the belly,
Feeling the belly expanding on inhalation,
Falling on an exhalation.
Others may feel the breath more in the chest or the nose area.
Wherever it's more predominant,
There are some perhaps that feel the whole body as it breathes in and breathes out.
So wherever you feel it to be the most compelling,
It brings your attention,
Resting awareness at that place,
And just experiencing directly the breath as it comes in and goes out,
Being present.
Of course,
As we're practicing,
The mind may wander off into different sounds or different physical sensations.
And in those moments,
Just acknowledge any sounds that are heard or any sensations that are felt.
If there seems to be a flurry of different thoughts and emotions,
Once you become aware of them,
Acknowledge them too and experience how they come and they eventually go as well.
And then just returning back to the breath in and the breath out.
Sitting in the now,
Being present.
Mindfulness of breathing.
Just taking our lives one breath at a time,
Breathing in and breathing out,
Being present.
Mindfulness of breathing.
And now we can be unhurried,
Just as it is,
One breath to the next.
Just breathing in and breathing out.
As we come towards the end of this meditation,
Taking some moments to congratulate yourself that you've taken this time to be present.
It's rare that we give ourselves this time to be within our own bodies and mind and heart and being with the breath.
Taking the moment just to open into our hearts with great compassion and great kindness.
And extending our goodwill to all beings,
To all who breathe.
May all beings be at peace.
In just a few moments,
A bell will ring to end this meditation.
And as we arise from the practice,
Feeling a sense of awakefulness and ease,
May all beings be at peace.
